50 Fun Facts About Modern Pop Music

'Golden', a 2025 Hot 100 No. 1 that later won the Oscar for Best Original Song, comes from which animated film?

KPop Demon Hunters arrived on Netflix in June 2025, and 'Golden' is sung by Ejae, Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami as the fictional girl group Huntrix, winning Best Song Written for Visual Media at the 2026 Grammys too.

Whose 2024 hit, built on J-Kwon's 'Tipsy', tied the Hot 100 record with 19 weeks at No. 1?

Shaboozey interpolated the clean version of the 2004 single on 'A Bar Song (Tipsy)', and its 19 non-consecutive weeks on top equalled the longest reign in the chart's history at that point.

Wiz Khalifa's 2015 hit 'See You Again' was commissioned for Furious 7 as a tribute to which actor?

Paul Walker was honoured with a track produced and co-written by Charlie Puth, and its video was YouTube's most-viewed for almost a month in 2017, overtaking Psy.

Which Glass Animals song reached No. 1 on the Hot 100 in March 2022 after a record 59-week climb?

Heat Waves had been released in June 2020 as a single from Dreamland, the band's third album, and re-entered the chart in September 2021 on the back of heavy use as TikTok backing music.

Which singer swept the Grammys' four main awards in January 2020 at 18, a feat only Christopher Cross had managed?

Billie Eilish became the youngest winner of Album of the Year and the first woman to take all four general-field awards in one year; Cross had done it in 1981.

Whose 1988 hit, covered by Luke Combs in 2023, made her the first Black songwriter to win a CMA Award?

Tracy Chapman then sang 'Fast Car' with Combs at the February 2024 Grammys, her first televised live performance in nine years, after his version reached No. 2 on the Hot 100.

Which 2021 Disney film produced the first song from a Disney animation to top the Hot 100 since 1993?

Encanto's 'We Don't Talk About Bruno', written by Lin-Manuel Miranda, followed Aladdin's 'A Whole New World' as only the second chart-topper from a Disney animated film; Disney had already submitted 'Dos Oruguitas' for the Oscar.

Which Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee hit's video was the first on YouTube to pass three billion views, in August 2017?

Despacito's video went on to be the first to reach four, five and six billion views as well, and the April 2017 Justin Bieber remix carried the song to 16 weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100.

Whose 2009 album I Dreamed a Dream sold 411,820 UK copies in week one, a record for a debut at the time?

Susan Boyle had sung the Les Misérables number on Britain's Got Talent in April 2009 to over 10 million viewers, and the album also opened at No. 1 in the US with 701,000 copies sold.

Which ringtone character's 2005 'Axel F' cover outsold Coldplay four to one to reach UK No. 1?

Crazy Frog was an animated character created by ringtone provider Jamba!, and its techno take on Harold Faltermeyer's Beverly Hills Cop theme stayed on top of the UK chart for four weeks.

Which Benson Boone single topped the charts in 19 countries in 2024 yet stalled at No. 2 in the US?

Beautiful Things was released in January 2024 as the lead single from Boone's debut album Fireworks & Rollerblades, reaching No. 1 in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland and the UK among others.

Which Kate Bush song hit UK No. 1 in 2022 via Stranger Things, a record 37 years after release?

Running Up That Hill made Bush, at 63, the oldest woman to reach a UK No. 1 and gave her a 44-year gap between chart-toppers, a record for a solo artist.

Which Lewis Capaldi ballad's video starred his distant cousin Peter Capaldi before it topped the Hot 100?

Someone You Loved spent seven consecutive weeks at No. 1 in the UK and was nominated for Song of the Year at the 62nd Grammys, with the actor playing a bereaved husband in the video.

Which Tones and I song, written while busking, broke the Australian record with 24 weeks at No. 1?

Dance Monkey also set a record for a female artist with 11 weeks atop the UK Singles Chart, and its No. 4 US peak made it the first top-five hit solely written by a woman in over eight years.

Whose 'Call Me Maybe' took off after Justin Bieber tweeted it was 'possibly the catchiest song I've ever heard'?

Carly Rae Jepsen was signed by Scooter Braun to Schoolboy Records after Bieber and Selena Gomez tweeted about the song, which then spent nine straight weeks at No. 1 in 2012.

Which Mariah Carey single spent 14 weeks at No. 1 in 2005 and was named Billboard's song of the 2000s?

We Belong Together was hailed as the 'return of the Voice' on The Emancipation of Mimi and won Best R&B Song and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance at the 48th Grammys.

Which Childish Gambino song, a No. 1 debut in 2018, was the first rap track to win Record of the Year?

This Is America won all four of its categories at the 61st Grammys, and its Hiro Murai-directed video arrived the night Gambino hosted Saturday Night Live in May 2018.

Whose amapiano hit 'Water' won the first-ever Grammy for Best African Music Performance, in 2024?

Tyla was the first South African soloist in over 55 years to enter the Hot 100, following Hugh Masekela in 1968, and the song's viral dance ends with water poured down the back.

Which Chainsmokers hit with Halsey, the first with Andrew Taggart on lead vocals, spent 12 weeks at No. 1?

Closer gained two extra writers in September 2016 when Isaac Slade and Joe King of The Fray were credited after comparisons with 'Over My Head (Cable Car)'.

Which Moulin Rouge! remake by Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim, Mýa and Pink hit No. 1 in 2001 on airplay alone?

Lady Marmalade was only the third airplay-only song in Billboard history to top the Hot 100, spent five weeks there and won Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals at the 44th Grammys.

Which 2012 Baauer track debuted at No. 1 in February 2013 in the first week Billboard counted YouTube views?

Harlem Shake was carried by 103 million weekly video streams, as a 30-second clip of people convulsing to its beat drop was parodied more than 3,000 times.

Which Hozier single gave him a first Hot 100 No. 1 in 2024, the first by an Irish act in 34 years?

Too Sweet surpassed the No. 2 peak of 'Take Me to Church' and ended a drought for Irish acts that stretched back to Sinéad O'Connor in 1990, three weeks after its release from the EP Unheard.

Which Meghan Trainor debut single's eight weeks at No. 1 were 2014's longest run by a female artist?

All About That Bass was released in June 2014 through Epic Records and went on to be nominated for both Record and Song of the Year at the 57th Grammys.

Which Italian band won Eurovision 2021 with 'Zitti e buoni', then took 'Beggin'' into the US top 20?

Måneskin had finished second on Italy's X Factor in 2017 and won the Sanremo Music Festival in March 2021 before the Eurovision victory, and 'Beggin'' peaked at No. 13 on the Hot 100.

Which Robin Thicke hit led to a $5.3 million verdict for copying Marvin Gaye's 'Got to Give It Up'?

Blurred Lines topped the Hot 100 for 12 straight weeks in 2013; the jury's original $7.4 million award was cut to $5.3 million and upheld on appeal in 2018.

Which Fun. song with Janelle Monáe won Song of the Year in 2013 after a Chevrolet Super Bowl ad?

We Are Young spent six straight weeks at No. 1 after the Glee cast's version charted and Chevrolet used the song in a Sonic commercial during Super Bowl XLVI.

Which Teddy Swims song hit No. 1 in its 32nd chart week and finished as Billboard's top single of 2024?

Lose Control was released in June 2023 as the second single from the debut album I've Tried Everything but Therapy (Part 1), and its 32-week ascent was the longest consecutive climb to the top at that time.

Which Kesha debut single was the first Hot 100 No. 1 of the 2010s and spent nine weeks at the top?

Tik Tok was released on 7 August 2009 as the lead single from her debut album Animal, which followed in 2010.

Which Alex Warren ballad's 13 weeks at UK No. 1 in 2025 broke a record that had stood for 70 years?

Ordinary was released in February 2025 as the lead single from Warren's debut album You'll Be Alright, Kid, and it also spent ten weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100.

Which Sia song, rejected by Rihanna for her album Anti, became Sia's first Hot 100 No. 1 in 2016?

Cheap Thrills was released in December 2015 as the second single from This Is Acting, and a remix with Jamaican singer Sean Paul followed in February 2016.

Which Lil Nas X single was promoted with MSCHF's 'Satan Shoes', each holding a drop of human blood?

Montero (Call Me by Your Name) debuted at the top of the Hot 100, and its video has Lil Nas X pole-dance down to Hell and give Satan a lap dance.

Which Macklemore & Ryan Lewis hit with Wanz was only the second independent release to top the Hot 100?

Thrift Shop came nearly 20 years after Lisa Loeb's 'Stay (I Missed You)' in 1994, spent six non-consecutive weeks at No. 1 and won Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song at the Grammys.

Which Noah Kahan song is named for New England's bare weeks between Halloween and the first snow?

Stick Season began as a verse Kahan uploaded to TikTok in 2022 during a 'bout of insecurity', and it went on to reach No. 1 in the UK and No. 9 on the Hot 100.

Which Ed Sheeran single did a judge clear in April 2022 of copying Sami Chokri's 2015 song 'Oh Why'?

Shape of You was released on 6 January 2017 as one of two lead singles from ÷, and the ruling found Sheeran had 'neither deliberately nor subconsciously copied' the song.

Whose 2012 song 'Cheerleader' took off in a Felix Jaehn remix and spent six weeks at US No. 1?

Omi first released the song in 2012, and the young German DJ's tropical deep-house rework, finished in January 2014, went on to reach No. 1 in 20 countries including the UK, where it became the longest-running single by a Jamaican artist.

Which duo's Speakerboxxx/The Love Below was only the second hip hop album to win Album of the Year?

Outkast became the first duo to replace itself at No. 1 when 'Hey Ya!' gave way to 'The Way You Move' after nine weeks, and the double album was certified 13-times platinum in 2023.

Jack Harlow's 'First Class', a No. 1 debut in 2022, heavily samples which 2006 Fergie hit?

Glamorous, which features Ludacris, supplies the hook of a track from Come Home the Kids Miss You whose teaser went viral on TikTok for its 'summery vibes'.

Which Eslabón Armado and Peso Pluma hit was the first regional Mexican song to top the Global 200?

Ella Baila Sola rose to No. 4 on the Hot 100 in its sixth week, then the highest position for any Mexican artist, and Peso Pluma sang it on The Tonight Show in April 2023 in his first TV performance.

Which Kelly Clarkson hit did Hilary Duff's team reject because she could not reach its higher notes?

Since U Been Gone, written and produced by Max Martin and Dr. Luke, won Best Female Pop Vocal Performance at the 48th Grammys and led the album Breakaway.

Which 'Party Rock Anthem' duo pairs a son and a grandson of Motown founder Berry Gordy?

LMFAO's Redfoo is Berry Gordy's youngest son and Sky Blu is Redfoo's half-nephew, and the pair announced a hiatus in September 2012 after 'Sexy and I Know It' gave them a second US No. 1.

Which singer, who left Polydor over a shelved debut album, won six Brit Awards in one night in 2024?

Raye's six wins were the most any artist had taken at a single Brit Awards, and they followed 'Escapism', her first UK No. 1, released after she went independent.

Which Sam Smith song won Song of the Year in 2015 after Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne were added as co-writers?

Stay with Me was settled with Petty's publisher for a 12.5% songwriting credit over its likeness to 'I Won't Back Down', and also won Record of the Year.

Which Danger Mouse and CeeLo Green duo scored the first UK No. 1 earned on downloads alone, in 2006?

Gnarls Barkley and their label later pulled the physical single from UK shops after its long run on top so people would 'remember the song fondly and not get sick of it'.

Who won Best New Artist at the 2026 Grammys, the first British winner since Dua Lipa in 2019?

Olivia Dean was the ninth woman in a row to take the award, at a ceremony hosted by Trevor Noah at Los Angeles's Crypto.com Arena on 1 February 2026.

Who became the first openly transgender artist to win a major-category Grammy, for 'Unholy' with Sam Smith?

Kim Petras and Sam Smith took Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the 65th Grammys; the song had topped the UK chart for four weeks and the Hot 100 for one.

Which Japanese musician's 1970s solo album, heard by Harry Styles in Japan, inspired the title Harry's House?

Haruomi Hosono's record was Hosono House; Joni Mitchell, whose 1975 album had a track called 'Harry's House / Centerpiece', tweeted that she loved the title.

Which rapper headlined Glastonbury 2019 wearing a Union Jack stab vest designed by Banksy?

Stormzy was the first British rapper to headline the festival, and his debut Gang Signs & Prayer had already been the first grime album to reach No. 1 in the UK.

Which Avicii hit, sung by an uncredited Aloe Blacc, angered Ultra 2013 fans when premiered with a live band?

Wake Me Up was written by Avicii with Blacc and Incubus guitarist Mike Einziger, and it went on to reach No. 1 in 22 countries including the UK.

Which Killers debut single recounts Brandon Flowers finding his girlfriend cheating in a Las Vegas bar?

Mr. Brightside was released in September 2003 ahead of the album Hot Fuss and peaked at only No. 10 on the Hot 100 in 2005.

Which Dido song from the Sliding Doors credits had its opening verse sampled in Eminem's 'Stan'?

Thank You reached No. 3 on the Hot 100 in April 2001 as a single from No Angel, three years after the film and a year after the Eminem sample.